1. Philo of Alexandria, That Every Good Person Is Free, 84 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 84. Accordingly, the sacred volumes present an infinite number of instances of the disposition devoted to the love of God, and of a continued and uninterrupted purity throughout the whole of life, of a careful avoidance of oaths and of falsehood, and of a strict adherence to the principle of looking on the Deity as the cause of everything which is good and of nothing which is evil. They also furnish us with many proofs of a love of virtue, such as abstinence from all covetousness of money, from ambition, from indulgence in pleasures, temperance, endurance, and also moderation, simplicity, good temper, the absence of pride, obedience to the laws, steadiness, and everything of that kind; and, lastly, they bring forward as proofs of the love of mankind, goodwill, equality beyond all power of description, and fellowship, about which it is not unreasonable to say a few words. |
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2. Josephus Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 1.33, 3.143, 10.259, 11.139, 11.237, 11.346, 12.4, 12.259, 12.276-12.277, 13.171-13.173, 13.301, 13.303-13.308, 13.310-13.313, 13.318-13.319, 13.328-13.364, 13.371-13.374, 13.395-13.397, 14.264, 15.371-15.379, 17.278, 17.345-17.348, 18.18-18.19, 19.60, 20.175 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.33. Accordingly Moses says, That in just six days the world, and all that is therein, was made. And that the seventh day was a rest, and a release from the labor of such operations; whence it is that we Celebrate a rest from our labors on that day, and call it the Sabbath, which word denotes rest in the Hebrew tongue. 1.33. Those who were sent went at certain intervals of space asunder, that, by following thick, one after another, they might appear to be more numerous, that Esau might remit of his anger on account of these presents, if he were still in a passion. Instructions were also given to those that were sent to speak gently to him. 3.143. and above those loaves were put two vials full of frankincense. Now after seven days other loaves were brought in their stead, on the day which is by us called the Sabbath; for we call the seventh day the Sabbath. But for the occasion of this intention of placing loaves here, we will speak to it in another place. 10.259. but when it was day, he got up, and came to the den, and found the seal entire, which he had left the stone sealed withal; he also opened the seal, and cried out, and called to Daniel, and asked him if he were alive. And as soon as he heard the king’s voice, and said that he had suffered no harm, the king gave order that he should be drawn up out of the den. 11.139. 3. Now these things were truly done under the conduct of Esdras; and he succeeded in them, because God esteemed him worthy of the success of his conduct, on account of his goodness and righteousness. 11.237. but the king changed his mind, which happened, as I suppose, by the will of God, and was concerned for his wife, lest her fear should bring some very ill thing upon her 11.346. 7. Now when Alexander was dead, the government was parted among his successors, but the temple upon Mount Gerizzim remained. And if any one were accused by those of Jerusalem of having eaten things common or of having broken the Sabbath, or of any other crime of the like nature 12.4. He also seized upon Jerusalem, and for that end made use of deceit and treachery; for as he came into the city on a Sabbath day, as if he would offer sacrifices he, without any trouble, gained the city, while the Jews did not oppose him, for they did not suspect him to be their enemy; and he gained it thus, because they were free from suspicion of him, and because on that day they were at rest and quietness; and when he had gained it, he ruled over it in a cruel manner. 12.4. 5. When this epistle was sent to the king, he commanded that an epistle should be drawn up for Eleazar, the Jewish high priest, concerning these matters; and that they should inform him of the release of the Jews that had been in slavery among them. He also sent fifty talents of gold for the making of large basons, and vials, and cups, and an immense quantity of precious stones. 12.4. But when Judas saw that Alcimus was already become great, and had destroyed many of the good and holy men of the country, he also went all over the country, and destroyed those that were of the other party. But when Alcimus saw that he was not able to oppose Judas, nor was equal to him in strength, he resolved to apply himself to king Demetrius for his assistance; 12.259. Our forefathers, upon certain frequent plagues, and as following a certain ancient superstition, had a custom of observing that day which by the Jews is called the Sabbath. And when they had erected a temple at the mountain called Gerrizzim, though without a name, they offered upon it the proper sacrifices. 12.276. who taught them to fight, even on the Sabbath day; and told them that unless they would do so, they would become their own enemies, by observing the law [so rigorously], while their adversaries would still assault them on this day, and they would not then defend themselves, and that nothing could then hinder but they must all perish without fighting. 12.277. This speech persuaded them. And this rule continues among us to this day, that if there be a necessity, we may fight on Sabbath days. 13.171. 9. At this time there were three sects among the Jews, who had different opinions concerning human actions; the one was called the sect of the Pharisees, another the sect of the Sadducees, and the other the sect of the Essenes. 13.172. Now for the Pharisees, they say that some actions, but not all, are the work of fate, and some of them are in our own power, and that they are liable to fate, but are not caused by fate. But the sect of the Essenes affirm, that fate governs all things, and that nothing befalls men but what is according to its determination. 13.173. And for the Sadducees, they take away fate, and say there is no such thing, and that the events of human affairs are not at its disposal; but they suppose that all our actions are in our own power, so that we are ourselves the causes of what is good, and receive what is evil from our own folly. However, I have given a more exact account of these opinions in the second book of the Jewish War. 13.301. 1. Now when their father Hyrcanus was dead, the eldest son Aristobulus, intending to change the government into a kingdom, for so he resolved to do, first of all put a diadem on his head, four hundred eighty and one years and three months after the people had been delivered from the Babylonish slavery, and were returned to their own country again. 13.303. nay, he was alienated from his brother Antigonus by calumnies, and added him to the rest whom he slew; yet he seemed to have an affection for him, and made him above the rest a partner with him in the kingdom. Those calumnies he at first did not give credit to, partly because he loved him, and so did not give heed to what was said against him, and partly because he thought the reproaches were derived from the envy of the relaters. 13.304. But when Antigonus was once returned from the army, and that feast was then at hand when they make tabernacles to [the honor of God,] it happened that Arlstobulus was fallen sick, and that Antigonus went up most splendidly adorned, and with his soldiers about him in their armor, to the temple to celebrate the feast, and to put up many prayers for the recovery of his brother 13.305. when some wicked persons, who had a great mind to raise a difference between the brethren, made use of this opportunity of the pompous appearance of Antigonus, and of the great actions which he had done, and went to the king, and spitefully aggravated the pompous show of his at the feast 13.306. and pretended that all these circumstances were not like those of a private person; that these actions were indications of an affectation of royal authority; and that his coming with a strong body of men must be with an intention to kill him; and that his way of reasoning was this: That it was a silly thing in him, while it was in his power to reign himself, to look upon it as a great favor that he was honored with a lower dignity by his brother. 13.307. 2. Aristobulus yielded to these imputations, but took care both that his brother should not suspect him, and that he himself might not run the hazard of his own safety; so he ordered his guards to lie in a certain place that was under ground, and dark; (he himself then lying sick in the tower which was called Antonia;) and he commanded them, that in case Antigonus came in to him unarmed, they should not touch any body, but if armed, they should kill him; 13.308. yet did he send to Antigonus, and desired that he would come unarmed; but the queen, and those that joined with her in the plot against Antigonus, persuaded the messenger to tell him the direct contrary: how his brother had heard that he had made himself a fine suit of armor for war, and desired him to come to him in that armor, that he might see how fine it was. 13.311. But here one may take occasion to wonder at one Judas, who was of the sect of the Essenes, and who never missed the truth in his predictions; for this man, when he saw Antigonus passing by the temple, cried out to his companions and friends, who abode with him as his scholars, in order to learn the art of foretelling things to come? 13.312. “That it was good for him to die now, since he had spoken falsely about Antigonus, who is still alive, and I see him passing by, although he had foretold that he should die at the place called Strato’s Tower that very day, while yet the place is six hundred furlongs off, where he had foretold he should be slain; and still this day is a great part of it already past, so that he was in danger of proving a false prophet.” 13.313. As he was saying this, and that in a melancholy mood, the news came that Antigonus was slain in a place under ground, which itself was called also Strato’s Tower, or of the same name with that Caesarea which is seated at the sea. This event put the prophet into a great disorder. 13.318. He was called a lover of the Grecians; and had conferred many benefits on his own country, and made war against Iturea, and added a great part of it to Judea, and compelled the inhabitants, if they would continue in that country, to be circumcised, and to live according to the Jewish laws. 13.319. He was naturally a man of candor, and of great modesty, as Strabo bears witness, in the name of Timagenes; who says thus: “This man was a person of candor, and very serviceable to the Jews; for he added a country to them, and obtained a part of the nation of the Itureans for them, and bound them to them by the bond of the circumcision of their genitals.” 13.328. The only hope they had remaining was from the kings of Egypt, and from Ptolemy Lathyrus, who now held Cyprus, and who came to Cyprus when he was driven from the government of Egypt by Cleopatra his mother. So the people of Ptolemais sent to this Ptolemy Lathyrus, and desired him to come as a confederate, to deliver them, now they were in such danger, out of the hands of Alexander. 13.329. And as the ambassadors gave him hopes, that if he would pass over into Syria, he would have the people of Gaza on the side of those of Ptolemais; as also they said, that Zoilus, and besides these the Sidonians, and many others, would assist them; so he was elevated at this, and got his fleet ready as soon as possible. 13.331. for that Cleopatra would not overlook an army raised by Ptolemy for himself out of the neighborhood, but would come against them with a great army of her own, and this because she was laboring to eject her son out of Cyprus also; that as for Ptolemy, if he fail of his hopes, he can still retire to Cyprus, but that they will be left in the greatest danger possible. 13.332. Now Ptolemy, although he had heard of the change that was made in the people of Ptolemais, yet did he still go on with his voyage, and came to the country called Sycamine, and there set his army on shore. 13.333. This army of his, in the whole horse and foot together, were about thirty thousand, with which he marched near to Ptolemais, and there pitched his camp. But when the people of Ptolemais neither received his ambassadors, nor would hear what they had to say, he was under a very great concern. 13.334. 4. But when Zoilus and the people of Gaza came to him, and desired his assistance, because their country was laid waste by the Jews, and by Alexander, Alexander raised the siege, for fear of Ptolemy: and when he had drawn off his army into his own country, he used a stratagem afterwards, by privately inviting Cleopatra to come against Ptolemy, but publicly pretending to desire a league of friendship and mutual assistance with him; 13.335. and promising to give him four hundred talents of silver, he desired that, by way of requital, he would take off Zoilus the tyrant, and give his country to the Jews. And then indeed Ptolemy, with pleasure, made such a league of friendship with Alexander, and subdued Zoilus; 13.336. but when he afterwards heard that he had privily sent to Cleopatra his mother, he broke the league with him, which yet he had confirmed with an oath, and fell upon him, and besieged Ptolemais, because it would not receive him. However, leaving his generals, with some part of his forces, to go on with the siege, he went himself immediately with the rest to lay Judea waste; 13.337. and when Alexander understood this to be Ptolemy’s intention, he also got together about fifty thousand soldiers out of his own country; nay, as some writers have said, eighty thousand He then took his army, and went to meet Ptolemy; but Ptolemy fell upon Asochis, a city of Galilee, and took it by force on the Sabbath day, and there he took about ten thousand slaves, and a great deal of other prey. 13.338. 5. He then tried to take Sepphoris, which was a city not far from that which was destroyed, but lost many of his men; yet did he then go to fight with Alexander; which Alexander met him at the river Jordan, near a certain place called Saphoth, [not far from the river Jordan,] and pitched his camp near to the enemy. 13.339. He had however eight thousand in the first rank, which he styled Hecatontomachi, having shields of brass. Those in the first rank of Ptolemy’s soldiers also had shields covered with brass. But Ptolemy’s soldiers in other respects were inferior to those of Alexander, and therefore were more fearful of running hazards; 13.341. in the beginning of which, the acts on both sides, with their hands, and with their alacrity, were alike, and a great slaughter was made by both the armies; but Alexander was superior, till Philostephanus opportunely brought up the auxiliaries, to help those that were giving way; 13.342. but as there were no auxiliaries to afford help to that part of the Jews that gave way, it fell out that they fled, and those near them did no assist them, but fled along with them. However, Ptolemy’s soldiers acted quite otherwise; 13.343. for they followed the Jews, and killed them, till at length those that slew them pursued after them when they had made them all run away, and slew them so long, that their weapons of iron were blunted, and their hands quite tired with the slaughter; 13.344. for the report was, that thirty thousand men were then slain. Timagenes says they were fifty thousand. As for the rest, they were part of them taken captives, and the other part ran away to their own country. 13.345. 6. After this victory, Ptolemy overran all the country; and when night came on, he abode in certain villages of Judea, which when he found full of women and children, he commanded his soldiers to strangle them, and to cut them in pieces, and then to cast them into boiling caldrons, and then to devour their limbs as sacrifices. 13.346. This commandment was given, that such as fled from the battle, and came to them, might suppose their enemies were cannibals, and eat men’s flesh, and might on that account be still more terrified at them upon such a sight. 13.347. And both Strabo and Nicholaus [of Damascus] affirm, that they used these people after this manner, as I have already related. Ptolemy also took Ptolemais by force, as we have declared elsewhere. 13.348. 1. When Cleopatra saw that her son was grown great, and laid Judea waste, without disturbance, and had gotten the city of Gaza under his power, she resolved no longer to overlook what he did, when he was almost at her gates; and she concluded, that now he was so much stronger than before, he would be very desirous of the dominion over the Egyptians; 13.349. but she immediately marched against him, with a fleet at sea and an army of foot on land, and made Chelcias and Aias the Jews generals of her whole army, while she sent the greatest part of her riches, her grandchildren, and her testament, to the people of Cos. 13.351. but Ptolemy went out of Syria, and made haste unto Egypt, supposing that he should find it destitute of an army, and soon take it, though he failed of his hopes. At this time Chelcias, one of Cleopatra’s generals, happened to die in Celesyria, as he was in pursuit of Ptolemy. 13.352. 2. When Cleopatra heard of her son’s attempt, and that his Egyptian expedition did not succeed according to his expectations, she sent thither part of her army, and drove him out of that country; so when he was returned out of Egypt again, he abode during the winter at Gaza 13.353. in which time Cleopatra took the garrison that was in Ptolemais by siege, as well as the city; and when Alexander came to her, he gave her presents, and such marks of respect as were but proper, since under the miseries he endured by Ptolemy he had no other refuge but her. Now there were some of her friends who persuaded her to seize Alexander, and to overrun and take possession of the country, and not to sit still and see such a multitude of brave Jews subject to one man. 13.354. But Aias’s counsel was contrary to theirs, who said that “she would do an unjust action if she deprived a man that was her ally of that authority which belonged to him, and this a man who is related to us; for,” said he, “I would not have thee ignorant of this, that what injustice thou dost to him will make all us that are Jews to be thy enemies.” 13.355. This desire of Aias Cleopatra complied with, and did no injury to Alexander, but made a league of mutual assistance with him at Scythopolis, a city of Celesyria. 13.356. 3. So when Alexander was delivered from the fear he was in of Ptolemy, he presently made an expedition against Celesyria. He also took Gadara, after a siege of ten months. He took also Amathus, a very strong fortress belonging to the inhabitants above Jordan, where Theodorus, the son of Zeno, had his chief treasure, and what he esteemed most precious. This Zeno fell unexpectedly upon the Jews, and slew ten thousand of them, and seized upon Alexander’s baggage. 13.357. Yet did not this misfortune terrify Alexander; but he made an expedition upon the maritime parts of the country, Raphia and Anthedon, (the name of which king Herod afterwards changed to Agrippias,) and took even that by force. 13.358. But when Alexander saw that Ptolemy was retired from Gaza to Cyprus, and his mother Cleopatra was returned to Egypt, he grew angry at the people of Gaza, because they had invited Ptolemy to assist them, and besieged their city, and ravaged their country. 13.359. But as Apollodotus, the general of the army of Gaza, fell upon the camp of the Jews by night, with two thousand foreign and ten thousand of his own forces, while the night lasted, those of Gaza prevailed, because the enemy was made to believe that it was Ptolemy who attacked them; but when day was come on, and that mistake was corrected, and the Jews knew the truth of the matter, they came back again, and fell upon those of Gaza, and slew of them about a thousand. 13.361. but it happened that before he came Apollodotus was slain; for his brother Lysimachus envying him for the great reputation he had gained among the citizens, slew him, and got the army together, and delivered up the city to Alexander 13.362. who, when he came in at first, lay quiet, but afterward set his army upon the inhabitants of Gaza, and gave them leave to punish them; so some went one way, and some went another, and slew the inhabitants of Gaza; yet were not they of cowardly hearts, but opposed those that came to slay them, and slew as many of the Jews; 13.363. and some of them, when they saw themselves deserted, burnt their own houses, that the enemy might get none of their spoils; nay, some of them, with their own hands, slew their children and their wives, having no other way but this of avoiding slavery for them; 13.364. but the senators, who were in all five hundred, fled to Apollo’s temple, (for this attack happened to be made as they were sitting,) whom Alexander slew; and when he had utterly overthrown their city, he returned to Jerusalem, having spent a year in that siege. 13.371. Both these brothers did Antiochus vehemently oppose, but presently died; for when he was come as an auxiliary to Laodice, queen of the Gileadites, when she was making war against the Parthians, and he was fighting courageously, he fell, while Demetrius and Philip governed Syria, as hath been elsewhere related. 13.372. 5. As to Alexander, his own people were seditious against him; for at a festival which was then celebrated, when he stood upon the altar, and was going to sacrifice, the nation rose upon him, and pelted him with citrons [which they then had in their hands, because] the law of the Jews required that at the feast of tabernacles every one should have branches of the palm tree and citron tree; which thing we have elsewhere related. They also reviled him, as derived from a captive, and so unworthy of his dignity and of sacrificing. 13.373. At this he was in a rage, and slew of them about six thousand. He also built a partition-wall of wood round the altar and the temple, as far as that partition within which it was only lawful for the priests to enter; and by this means he obstructed the multitude from coming at him. 13.374. He also maintained foreigners of Pisidiae and Cilicia; for as to the Syrians, he was at war with them, and so made no use of them. He also overcame the Arabians, such as the Moabites and Gileadites, and made them bring tribute. Moreover, he demolished Amathus, while Theodorus durst not fight with him; 13.395. 4. Now at this time the Jews were in possession of the following cities that had belonged to the Syrians, and Idumeans, and Phoenicians: At the sea-side, Strato’s Tower, Apollonia, Joppa, Jamnia, Ashdod, Gaza, Anthedon, Raphia, and Rhinocolura; 13.396. in the middle of the country, near to Idumea, Adora, and Marissa; near the country of Samaria, Mount Carmel, and Mount Tabor, Scythopolis, and Gadara; of the country of Gaulonitis, Seleucia and Gabala; 13.397. in the country of Moab, Heshbon, and Medaba, Lemba, and Oronas, Gelithon, Zara, the valley of the Cilices, and Pella; which last they utterly destroyed, because its inhabitants would not bear to change their religious rites for those peculiar to the Jews. The Jews also possessed others of the principal cities of Syria, which had been destroyed. 14.264. Accordingly, it was decreed by the senate and people, that in this affair that concerned the Romans, no one of them should be hindered from keeping the Sabbath day, nor be fined for so doing, but that they may be allowed to do all things according to their own laws.” 15.371. The Essenes also, as we call a sect of ours, were excused from this imposition. These men live the same kind of life as do those whom the Greeks call Pythagoreans, concerning whom I shall discourse more fully elsewhere. 15.372. However, it is but fit to set down here the reasons wherefore Herod had these Essenes in such honor, and thought higher of them than their mortal nature required; nor will this account be unsuitable to the nature of this history, as it will show the opinion men had of these Essenes. 15.373. 5. Now there was one of these Essenes, whose name was Manahem, who had this testimony, that he not only conducted his life after an excellent manner, but had the foreknowledge of future events given him by God also. This man once saw Herod when he was a child, and going to school, and saluted him as king of the Jews; 15.374. but he, thinking that either he did not know him, or that he was in jest, put him in mind that he was but a private man; but Manahem smiled to himself, and clapped him on his backside with his hand, and said, “However that be, thou wilt be king, and wilt begin thy reign happily, for God finds thee worthy of it. And do thou remember the blows that Manahem hath given thee, as being a signal of the change of thy fortune. 15.375. And truly this will be the best reasoning for thee, that thou love justice [towards men], and piety towards God, and clemency towards thy citizens; yet do I know how thy whole conduct will be, that thou wilt not be such a one 15.376. for thou wilt excel all men in happiness, and obtain an everlasting reputation, but wilt forget piety and righteousness; and these crimes will not be concealed from God, at the conclusion of thy life, when thou wilt find that he will be mindful of them, and punish time for them.” 15.377. Now at that time Herod did not at all attend to what Manahem said, as having no hopes of such advancement; but a little afterward, when he was so fortunate as to be advanced to the dignity of king, and was in the height of his dominion, he sent for Manahem, and asked him how long he should reign. 15.378. Manahem did not tell him the full length of his reign; wherefore, upon that silence of his, he asked him further, whether he should reign ten years or not? He replied, “Yes, twenty, nay, thirty years;” but did not assign the just determinate limit of his reign. Herod was satisfied with these replies, and gave Manahem his hand, and dismissed him; and from that time he continued to honor all the Essenes. 15.379. We have thought it proper to relate these facts to our readers, how strange soever they be, and to declare what hath happened among us, because many of these Essenes have, by their excellent virtue, been thought worthy of this knowledge of divine revelations. 17.278. 7. But because Athronges, a person neither eminent by the dignity of his progenitors, nor for any great wealth he was possessed of, but one that had in all respects been a shepherd only, and was not known by any body; yet because he was a tall man, and excelled others in the strength of his hands, he was so bold as to set up for king. This man thought it so sweet a thing to do more than ordinary injuries to others, that although he should be killed, he did not much care if he lost his life in so great a design. 17.345. 3. Now, before Archelaus was gone up to Rome upon this message, he related this dream to his friends: That he saw ears of corn, in number ten, full of wheat, perfectly ripe, which ears, as it seemed to him, were devoured by oxen. 17.346. And when he was awake and gotten up, because the vision appeared to be of great importance to him, he sent for the diviners, whose study was employed about dreams. And while some were of one opinion, and some of another, (for all their interpretations did not agree,) Simon, a man of the sect of the Essenes, desired leave to speak his mind freely, and said that the vision denoted a change in the affairs of Archelaus, and that not for the better; 17.347. that oxen, because that animal takes uneasy pains in his labors, denoted afflictions, and indeed denoted, further, a change of affairs, because that land which is ploughed by oxen cannot remain in its former state; and that the ears of corn being ten, determined the like number of years, because an ear of corn grows in one year; and that the time of Archelaus’s government was over. And thus did this man expound the dream. 17.348. Now on the fifth day after this dream came first to Archelaus, the other Archelaus, that was sent to Judea by Caesar to call him away, came hither also. 18.18. 5. The doctrine of the Essenes is this: That all things are best ascribed to God. They teach the immortality of souls, and esteem that the rewards of righteousness are to be earnestly striven for; 18.18. Now Antonia was greatly esteemed by Tiberius on all accounts, from the dignity of her relation to him, who had been his brother Drusus’s wife, and from her eminent chastity; for though she was still a young woman, she continued in her widowhood, and refused all other matches, although Augustus had enjoined her to be married to somebody else; yet did she all along preserve her reputation free from reproach. 18.19. and when they send what they have dedicated to God into the temple, they do not offer sacrifices because they have more pure lustrations of their own; on which account they are excluded from the common court of the temple, but offer their sacrifices themselves; yet is their course of life better than that of other men; and they entirely addict themselves to husbandry. 18.19. But when Caesar had gone round the hippodrome, he found Agrippa standing: “For certain,” said he, “Macro, this is the man I meant to have bound;” and when he still asked, “Which of these is to be bound?” he said “Agrippa.” 20.175. But the Jewish citizens depending on their wealth, and on that account despising the Syrians, reproached them again, and hoped to provoke them by such reproaches. |
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3. Josephus Flavius, Jewish War, 1.10, 1.78-1.80, 1.86-1.89, 1.146, 1.331, 1.370, 1.373, 1.376, 1.613, 2.60, 2.112-2.113, 2.129-2.135, 2.139-2.140, 2.144, 2.147, 2.150, 2.159, 2.268, 2.376, 2.454, 2.456-2.457, 2.463, 2.476, 2.517, 2.580, 3.341, 3.399-3.408, 3.485, 4.34, 4.76, 4.501, 4.503, 4.649, 4.662, 5.377, 6.59, 6.252, 6.296, 6.303, 6.331, 7.120, 7.159, 7.185, 7.318 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.78. 5. And truly anyone would be surprised at Judas upon this occasion. He was of the sect of the Essenes, and had never failed or deceived men in his predictions before. Now, this man saw Antigonus as he was passing along by the temple, and cried out to his acquaintance (they were not a few who attended upon him as his scholars) 1.79. “O strange!” said he, “it is good for me to die now, since truth is dead before me, and somewhat that I have foretold hath proved false; for this Antigonus is this day alive, who ought to have died this day; and the place where he ought to be slain, according to that fatal decree, was Strato’s Tower, which is at the distance of six hundred furlongs from this place; and yet four hours of this day are over already; which point of time renders the prediction impossible to be fulfilled.” 1.86. 2. Now it happened that there was a battle between him and Ptolemy, who was called Lathyrus, who had taken the city Asochis. He indeed slew a great many of his enemies, but the victory rather inclined to Ptolemy. But when this Ptolemy was pursued by his mother Cleopatra, and retired into Egypt, Alexander besieged Gadara, and took it; as also he did Amathus, which was the strongest of all the fortresses that were about Jordan, and therein were the most precious of all the possessions of Theodorus, the son of Zeno. 1.87. Whereupon Theodorus marched against him, and took what belonged to himself as well as the king’s baggage, and slew ten thousand of the Jews. However, Alexander recovered this blow, and turned his force towards the maritime parts, and took Raphia and Gaza, with Anthedon also, which was afterwards called Agrippias by king Herod. 1.88. 3. But when he had made slaves of the citizens of all these cities, the nation of the Jews made an insurrection against him at a festival; for at those feasts seditions are generally begun; and it looked as if he should not be able to escape the plot they had laid for him, had not his foreign auxiliaries, the Pisidians and Cilicians, assisted him; for as to the Syrians, he never admitted them among his mercenary troops, on account of their innate enmity against the Jewish nation. 1.89. And when he had slain more than six thousand of the rebels, he made an incursion into Arabia; and when he had taken that country, together with the Gileadites and Moabites, he enjoined them to pay him tribute, and returned to Amathus; and as Theodorus was surprised at his great success, he took the fortress, and demolished it. 1.146. nor had the Romans succeeded in their endeavors, had not Pompey taken notice of the seventh days, on which the Jews abstain from all sorts of work on a religious account, and raised his bank, but restrained his soldiers from fighting on those days; for the Jews only acted defensively on Sabbath days. 1.331. 4. After this he marched through Jericho, as making what haste he could to be avenged on his brother’s murderers; where happened to him a providential sign, out of which, when he had unexpectedly escaped, he had the reputation of being very dear to God; for that evening there feasted with him many of the principal men; and after that feast was over, and all the guests were gone out, the house fell down immediately. 1.373. 4. “The present dread you are under seems to me to have seized upon you very unreasonably. It is true, you might justly be dismayed at that providential chastisement which hath befallen you; but to suffer yourselves to be equally terrified at the invasion of men is unmanly. As for myself, I am so far from being affrighted at our enemies after this earthquake, that I imagine that God hath thereby laid a bait for the Arabians, that we may be avenged on them; for their present invasion proceeds more from our accidental misfortunes, than that they have any great dependence on their weapons, or their own fitness for action. Now that hope which depends not on men’s own power, but on others’ ill success, is a very ticklish thing; for there is no certainty among men, either in their bad or good fortunes; 1.376. And indeed it is proper beforehand to be thus provident; but when we come to action, we ought to erect our minds, and to make our enemies, be they ever so wicked, believe that neither any human, no, nor any providential misfortune, can ever depress the courage of Jews while they are alive; nor will any of them ever overlook an Arabian, or suffer such a one to become lord of his good things, whom he has in a manner taken captive, and that many times also.And 1.613. Antipater complied with this last advice, for Providence hurried him on [to his destruction]. So he passed over the sea, and landed at Sebastus, the haven of Caesarea. 2.112. But the report goes, that before he was sent for by Caesar, he seemed to see nine ears of corn, full and large, but devoured by oxen. When, therefore, he had sent for the diviners, and some of the Chaldeans, and inquired of them what they thought it portended; 2.113. and when one of them had one interpretation, and another had another, Simon, one of the sect of Essenes, said that he thought the ears of corn denoted years, and the oxen denoted a mutation of things, because by their ploughing they made an alteration of the country. That therefore he should reign as many years as there were ears of corn; and after he had passed through various alterations of fortune, should die. Now five days after Archelaus had heard this interpretation he was called to his trial. 2.129. After this every one of them are sent away by their curators, to exercise some of those arts wherein they are skilled, in which they labor with great diligence till the fifth hour. After which they assemble themselves together again into one place; and when they have clothed themselves in white veils, they then bathe their bodies in cold water. And after this purification is over, they every one meet together in an apartment of their own, into which it is not permitted to any of another sect to enter; while they go, after a pure manner, into the dining-room, as into a certain holy temple 2.131. but a priest says grace before meat; and it is unlawful for anyone to taste of the food before grace be said. The same priest, when he hath dined, says grace again after meat; and when they begin, and when they end, they praise God, as he that bestows their food upon them; after which they lay aside their [white] garments, and betake themselves to their labors again till the evening; 2.132. then they return home to supper, after the same manner; and if there be any strangers there, they sit down with them. Nor is there ever any clamor or disturbance to pollute their house, but they give every one leave to speak in their turn; 2.133. which silence thus kept in their house appears to foreigners like some tremendous mystery; the cause of which is that perpetual sobriety they exercise, and the same settled measure of meat and drink that is allotted to them, and that such as is abundantly sufficient for them. 2.134. 6. And truly, as for other things, they do nothing but according to the injunctions of their curators; only these two things are done among them at everyone’s own free will, which are to assist those that want it, and to show mercy; for they are permitted of their own accord to afford succor to such as deserve it, when they stand in need of it, and to bestow food on those that are in distress; but they cannot give any thing to their kindred without the curators. 2.135. They dispense their anger after a just manner, and restrain their passion. They are eminent for fidelity, and are the ministers of peace; whatsoever they say also is firmer than an oath; but swearing is avoided by them, and they esteem it worse than perjury for they say that he who cannot be believed without [swearing by] God is already condemned. 2.139. And before he is allowed to touch their common food, he is obliged to take tremendous oaths, that, in the first place, he will exercise piety towards God, and then that he will observe justice towards men, and that he will do no harm to any one, either of his own accord, or by the command of others; that he will always hate the wicked, and be assistant to the righteous; 2.144. for which reason they receive many of them again when they are at their last gasp, out of compassion to them, as thinking the miseries they have endured till they came to the very brink of death to be a sufficient punishment for the sins they had been guilty of. 2.147. They also avoid spitting in the midst of them, or on the right side. Moreover, they are stricter than any other of the Jews in resting from their labors on the seventh day; for they not only get their food ready the day before, that they may not be obliged to kindle a fire on that day, but they will not remove any vessel out of its place, nor go to stool thereon. 2.159. 12. There are also those among them who undertake to foretell things to come, by reading the holy books, and using several sorts of purifications, and being perpetually conversant in the discourses of the prophets; and it is but seldom that they miss in their predictions. 2.268. Now these Jews exceeded the others in riches and strength of body; but the Grecian part had the advantage of assistance from the soldiery; for the greatest part of the Roman garrison was raised out of Syria; and being thus related to the Syrian part, they were ready to assist it. 2.376. Who is there among you that hath not heard of the great number of the Germans? You have, to be sure, yourselves seen them to be strong and tall, and that frequently, since the Romans have them among their captives everywhere; 2.454. And thus were all these men barbarously murdered, excepting Metilius; for when he entreated for mercy, and promised that he would turn Jew, and be circumcised, they saved him alive, but none else. This loss to the Romans was but light, there being no more than a few slain out of an immense army; but still it appeared to be a prelude to the Jews’ own destruction 2.456. for indeed it so happened that this murder was perpetrated on the Sabbath day, on which day the Jews have a respite from their works on account of Divine worship. 2.457. 1. Now the people of Caesarea had slain the Jews that were among them on the very same day and hour [when the soldiers were slain], which one would think must have come to pass by the direction of Providence; insomuch that in one hour’s time above twenty thousand Jews were killed, and all Caesarea was emptied of its Jewish inhabitants; for Florus caught such as ran away, and sent them in bonds to the galleys. 2.463. o the daytime was spent in shedding of blood, and the night in fear,—which was of the two the more terrible; for when the Syrians thought they had ruined the Jews, they had the Judaizers in suspicion also; and as each side did not care to slay those whom they only suspected on the other, so did they greatly fear them when they were mingled with the other, as if they were certainly foreigners. 2.476. o when he had gone over all his family, he stood upon their bodies to be seen by all, and stretching out his right hand, that his action might be observed by all, he sheathed his entire sword into his own bowels. This young man was to be pitied, on account of the strength of his body and the courage of his soul; but since he had assured foreigners of his fidelity [against his own countrymen], he suffered deservedly. 2.517. 2. But as for the Jews, when they saw the war approaching to their metropolis, they left the feast, and betook themselves to their arms; and taking courage greatly from their multitude, went in a sudden and disorderly manner to the fight, with a great noise, and without any consideration had of the rest of the seventh day, although the Sabbath was the day to which they had the greatest regard; 3.341. but as the city was first taken, he was assisted by a certain supernatural providence; for he withdrew himself from the enemy when he was in the midst of them, and leaped into a certain deep pit, whereto there adjoined a large den at one side of it, which den could not be seen by those that were above ground; 3.399. 9. When Josephus heard him give those orders, he said that he had somewhat in his mind that he would willingly say to himself alone. When therefore they were all ordered to withdraw, excepting Titus and two of their friends, he said 3.401. Dost thou send me to Nero? For why? Are Nero’s successors till they come to thee still alive? Thou, O Vespasian, art Caesar and emperor, thou, and this thy son. 3.402. Bind me now still faster, and keep me for thyself, for thou, O Caesar, are not only lord over me, but over the land and the sea, and all mankind; and certainly I deserve to be kept in closer custody than I now am in, in order to be punished, if I rashly affirm anything of God.” 3.403. When he had said this, Vespasian at present did not believe him, but supposed that Josephus said this as a cunning trick, in order to his own preservation; 3.404. but in a little time he was convinced, and believed what he said to be true, God himself erecting his expectations, so as to think of obtaining the empire, and by other signs foreshowing his advancement. 3.405. He also found Josephus to have spoken truth on other occasions; for one of those friends that were present at that secret conference said to Josephus, “I cannot but wonder how thou couldst not foretell to the people of Jotapata that they should be taken, nor couldst foretell this captivity which hath happened to thyself, unless what thou now sayest be a vain thing, in order to avoid the rage that is risen against thyself.” 3.406. To which Josephus replied, “I did foretell to the people of Jotapata that they would be taken on the forty-seventh day, and that I should be caught alive by the Romans.” 3.407. Now when Vespasian had inquired of the captives privately about these predictions, he found them to be true, and then he began to believe those that concerned himself. 3.408. Yet did he not set Josephus at liberty from his bands, but bestowed on him suits of clothes, and other precious gifts; he treated him also in a very obliging manner, and continued so to do, Titus still joining his interest in the honors that were done him. 3.485. 3. As Titus was saying this, an extraordinary fury fell upon the men; and as Trajan was already come before the fight began, with four hundred horsemen, they were uneasy at it, because the reputation of the victory would be diminished by being common to so many. 4.34. and bore up against the enemy’s attacks, who came running down from the top of the city; and without showing any dread at the multitude of the men or of their darts, he endured all, until the enemy took notice of that divine courage that was within him, and remitted of their attacks; 4.34. in the meantime, the zealots grew tumultuous, and had much ado to abstain from drawing their swords, although they designed to preserve the appearance and show of judicature to the end. They were also desirous, on other accounts, to try the judges, whether they would be mindful of what was just at their own peril. 4.76. However, there arose such a Divine storm against them as was instrumental to their destruction; this carried the Roman darts upon them, and made those which they threw return back, and drove them obliquely away from them; 4.501. but Titus, by a Divine impulse, sailed back from Greece to Syria, and came in great haste to Caesarea, to his father. 4.503. 3. And now there arose another war at Jerusalem. There was a son of Giora, one Simon, by birth of Gerasa, a young man, not so cunning indeed as John [of Gischala], who had already seized upon the city 4.649. where Domitian, with many other of the principal Romans, providentially escaped, while the rest of the multitude were entirely cut to pieces, and Sabinus himself was brought to Vitellius, and then slain; the soldiers also plundered the temple of its ornaments, and set it on fire. 4.662. After this he rested at Rhinocolura, and from thence he went to Raphia, which was his fourth station. This city is the beginning of Syria. For his fifth station he pitched his camp at Gaza; 5.377. and when was it that God, who is the Creator of the Jewish people, did not avenge them when they had been injured? Will not you turn again, and look back, and consider whence it is that you fight with such violence, and how great a Supporter you have profanely abused? Will not you recall to mind the prodigious things done for your forefathers and this holy place, and how great enemies of yours were by him subdued under you? 6.59. There followed him eleven others, and no more, that resolved to imitate his bravery; but still this was the principal person of them all, and went first, as excited by a divine fury. 6.252. At which time one of the soldiers, without staying for any orders, and without any concern or dread upon him at so great an undertaking, and being hurried on by a certain divine fury, snatched somewhat out of the materials that were on fire, and being lifted up by another soldier, he set fire to a golden window, through which there was a passage to the rooms that were round about the holy house, on the north side of it. 6.296. So these publicly declared that the signal foreshowed the desolation that was coming upon them. Besides these, a few days after that feast, on the one and twentieth day of the month Artemisius, [Jyar] 6.303. Hereupon our rulers, supposing, as the case proved to be, that this was a sort of divine fury in the man, brought him to the Roman procurator 6.331. nay, you know that the [strong] Germans themselves are our servants. Have you stronger walls than we have? Pray, what greater obstacle is there than the wall of the ocean, with which the Britons are encompassed, and yet do adore the arms of the Romans. 7.159. for he having now by Providence a vast quantity of wealth, besides what he had formerly gained in his other exploits, he had this temple adorned with pictures and statues; 7.185. Yet, after all this pains in getting, it is only valuable on account of one virtue it hath, that if it be only brought to sick persons, it quickly drives away those called demons, which are no other than the spirits of the wicked, that enter into men that are alive and kill them, unless they can obtain some help against them. 7.318. but after this, on a sudden the wind changed into the south, as if it were done by Divine Providence, and blew strongly the contrary way, and carried the flame, and drove it against the wall, which was now on fire through its entire thickness. |
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4. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.20-2.27 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.21. for he says, that “when the Jews had travelled a six days’ journey, they had buboes in their groins: and that on this account it was that they rested on the seventh day, as having got safely to that country which is now called Judea; that then they preserved the language of the Egyptians, and called that day the Sabbath, for that malady of buboes in their groin was named Sabbatosis by the Egyptians.” 2.21. Accordingly our legislator admits all those that have a mind to observe our laws, so to do; and this after a friendly manner, as esteeming that a true union, which not only extends to our own stock, but to those that would live after the same manner with us; yet does he not allow those that come to us by accident only to be admitted into communion with us. /p 2.22. And would not a man now laugh at this fellow’s trifling, or rather hate his impudence in writing thus? We must, it seems, take it for granted, that all these hundred and ten thousand men must have these buboes! 2.22. 32. Nay, indeed, in case it had so fallen out, that our nation had not been so thoroughly known among all men as they are, and our voluntary submission to our laws had not been so open and manifest as it is 2.23. But, for certain, if those men had been blind and lame, and had all sorts of distempers upon them, as Apion says they had, they could not have gone one single day’s journey; but if they had been all able to travel over a large desert, and, besides that, to fight and conquer those that opposed them, they had not all of them had buboes in their groins after the sixth day was over; 2.23. while they made use of other men as their servants for all the necessaries of life, and had their food prepared for them by the others: and these good and humane actions they do for no other purpose but this, that by their actions and their sufferings they may be able to conquer all those against whom they make war. 2.24. for no such distemper comes naturally and of necessity upon those that travel; but still, when there are many ten thousands in a camp together, they constantly march a settled space [in a day]. Nor is it at all probable that such a thing should happen by chance: this would be prodigiously absurd to be supposed. 2.24. uch as these, that they may be allowed to be as numerous as they have a mind to have them; that they are begotten one by another, and that after all the kinds of generation you can imagine. They also distinguish them in their places and ways of living, as they would distinguish several sorts of animals: as some to be under the earth; as some to be in the sea; and the ancientest of them all to be bound in hell; 2.25. However, our admirable author Apion hath before told us, that “they came to Judea in six days’ time;” and again, that “Moses went up to a mountain that lay between Egypt and Arabia, which was called Sinai, and was concealed there forty days, and that when he came down from thence he gave laws to the Jews.” But then, how was it possible for them to tarry forty days in a desert place where there was no water, and at the same time to pass all over the country between that and Judea in the six days? 2.25. 36. Wherefore it deserves our inquiry what should be the occasion of this unjust management, and of these scandals about the Deity. And truly I suppose it to be derived from the imperfect knowledge the heathen legislators had at first of the true nature of God; nor did they explain to the people even so far as they did comprehend of it: nor did they compose the other parts of their political settlements according to it 2.26. And as for this grammatical translation of the word Sabbath, it either contains an instance of his great impudence or gross ignorance; 2.26. and perhaps there may be some reason to blame the rigid severity of the Lacedemonians, for they bestowed the privilege of their city on no foreigners, nor indeed would give leave to them to stay among them; 2.27. for the words iSabboand iSabbathare widely different from one another; for the word Sabbath in the Jewish language denotes rest from all sorts of work; but the word Sabbo, as he affirms, denotes among the Egyptians the malady of a bubo in the groin. /p 2.27. And to be sure Apollonius was greatly pleased with the laws of the Persians, and was an admirer of them, because the Greeks enjoyed the advantage of their courage, and had the very same opinion about the gods which they had. This last was exemplified in the temples which they burnt, and their courage in coming, and almost entirely enslaving the Grecians. However, Apollonius has imitated all the Persian institutions, and that by his offering violence to other men’s wives, and castrating his own sons. |
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5. Josephus Flavius, Life, 275, 159 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
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6. Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies, 9.21, 9.25 (2nd cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)
| 9.21. The Essenes have, however, in the lapse of time, undergone divisions, and they do not preserve their system of training after a similar manner, inasmuch as they have been split up into four parties. For some of them discipline themselves above the requisite rules of the order, so that even they would not handle a current coin of the country, saying that they ought not either to carry, or behold, or fashion an image: wherefore no one of those goes into a city, lest (by so doing) he should enter through a gate at which statues are erected, regarding it a violation of law to pass beneath images. But the adherents of another party, if they happen to hear any one maintaining a discussion concerning God and His laws- supposing such to be an uncircumcised person, they will closely watch him and when they meet a person of this description in any place alone, they will threaten to slay him if he refuses to undergo the rite of circumcision. Now, if the latter does not wish to comply with this request, an Essene spares not, but even slaughters. And it is from this occurrence that they have received their appellation, being denominated (by some) Zelotae, but by others Sicarii. And the adherents of another party call no one Lord except the Deity, even though one should put them to the torture, or even kill them. But there are others of a later period, who have to such an extent declined from the discipline (of the order), that, as far as those are concerned who continue in the primitive customs, they would not even touch these. And if they happen to come in contact with them, they immediately resort to ablution, as if they had touched one belonging to an alien tribe. But here also there are very many of them of so great longevity, as even to live longer than a hundred years. They assert, therefore, that a cause of this arises from their extreme devotion to religion, and their condemnation of all excess in regard of what is served up (as food), and from their being temperate and incapable of anger. And so it is that they despise death, rejoicing when they can finish their course with a good conscience. If, however, any one would even put to the torture persons of this description, in order to induce any among them either to speak evil of the law, or eat what is offered in sacrifice to an idol, he will not effect his purpose; for one of this party submits to death and endures torment rather than violate his conscience. 9.25. Since, therefore, we have explained even the diversities among the Jews, it seems expedient likewise not to pass over in silence the system of their religion. The doctrine, therefore, among all Jews on the subject of religion is fourfold-theological, natural, moral, and ceremonial. And they affirm that there is one God, and that He is Creator and Lord of the universe: that He has formed all these glorious works which had no previous existence; and this, too, not out of any coeval substance that lay ready at hand, but His Will - the efficient cause- was to create, and He did create. And (they maintain) that there are angels, and that these have been brought into being for ministering unto the creation; but also that there is a sovereign Spirit that always continues beside God, for glory and praise. And that all things in the creation are endued with sensation, and that there is nothing iimate. And they earnestly aim at serious habits and a temperate life, as one may ascertain from their laws. Now these matters have long ago been strictly defined by those who in ancient times have received the divinely-appointed law; so that the reader will find himself astonished at the amount of temperance, and of diligence, lavished on customs legally enacted in reference to man. The ceremonial service, however, which has been adapted to divine worship in a manner befitting the dignity of religion, has been practised among them with the highest degree of elaboration. The superiority of their ritualism it is easy for those who wish it to ascertain, provided they read the book which furnishes information on these points. They will thus perceive how that with solemnity and sanctity the Jewish priests offer unto God the first-fruits of the gifts bestowed by Him for the rise and enjoyment of men; how they fulfil their ministrations with regularity and steadfastness, in obedience to His commandments. There are, however, some (liturgical usages adopted) by these, which the Sadducees refuse to recognise, for they are not disposed to acquiesce in the existence of angels or spirits. Still all parties alike expect Messiah, inasmuch as the Law certainly, and the prophets, preached beforehand that He was about to be present on earth. Inasmuch, however, as the Jews were not cognizant of the period of His advent, there remains the supposition that the declarations (of Scripture) concerning His coming have not been fulfilled. And so it is, that up to this day they continue in anticipation of the future coming of the Christ, - from the fact of their not discerning Him when He was present in the world. And (yet there can be little doubt but) that, on beholding the signs of the times of His having been already among us, the Jews are troubled; and that they are ashamed to confess that He has come, since they have with their own hands put Him to death, because they were stung with indignation in being convicted by Himself of not having obeyed the laws. And they affirm that He who was thus sent forth by God is not this Christ (whom they are looking for); but they confess that another Messiah will come, who as yet has no existence; and that he will usher in some of the signs which the law and the prophets have shown beforehand, whereas, regarding the rest (of these indications), they suppose that they have fallen into error. For they say that his generation will be from the stock of David, but not from a virgin and the Holy Spirit, but from a woman and a man, according as it is a rule for all to be procreated from seed. And they allege that this Messiah will be King over them - a warlike and powerful individual, who, after having gathered together the entire people of the Jews, and having done battle with all the nations, will restore for them Jerusalem the royal city. And into this city He will collect together the entire Hebrew race, and bring it back once more into the ancient customs, that it may fulfil the regal and sacerdotal functions, and dwell in confidence for periods of time of sufficient duration. After this repose, it is their opinion that war would next be waged against them after being thus congregated; that in this conflict Christ would fall by the edge of the sword; and that, after no long time, would next succeed the termination and conflagration of the universe; and that in this way their opinions concerning the resurrection would receive completion, and a recompense be rendered to each man according to his works. |
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7. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot, 29a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
29a. והשקיף בה שתים ושלש שעות ולא העלוהו,אמאי לא העלוהו והאמר רב יהודה אמר רב טעה בכל הברכות כלן אין מעלין אותו בברכת הצדוקים מעלין אותו חיישינן שמא מין הוא,שאני שמואל הקטן דאיהו תקנה,וניחוש דלמא הדר ביה אמר אביי גמירי טבא לא הוי בישא,ולא והכתיב (יחזקאל יח, כד) ובשוב צדיק מצדקתו ועשה עול ההוא רשע מעיקרו אבל צדיק מעיקרו לא,ולא והא תנן אל תאמין בעצמך עד יום מותך שהרי יוחנן כ"ג שמש בכהונה גדולה שמנים שנה ולבסוף נעשה צדוקי,אמר אביי הוא ינאי הוא יוחנן רבא אמר ינאי לחוד ויוחנן לחוד ינאי רשע מעיקרו ויוחנן צדיק מעיקרו הניחא לאביי אלא לרבא קשיא,אמר לך רבא צדיק מעיקרו נמי דלמא הדר ביה אי הכי אמאי לא אסקוהו,שאני שמואל הקטן דאתחיל בה דאמר רב יהודה אמר רב ואיתימא רבי יהושע בן לוי לא שנו אלא שלא התחיל בה אבל התחיל בה גומרה:,הני שבע דשבתא כנגד מי א"ר חלפתא בן שאול כנגד שבעה קולות שאמר דוד על המים,הני תשע דר"ה כנגד מי א"ר יצחק דמן קרטיגנין כנגד תשעה אזכרות שאמרה חנה בתפלתה דאמר מר בראש השנה נפקדה שרה רחל וחנה,הני עשרים וארבע דתעניתא כנגד מי א"ר חלבו כנגד כ"ד רננות שאמר שלמה בשעה שהכניס ארון לבית קדשי הקדשים אי הכי כל יומא נמי נמרינהו אימת אמרינהו שלמה ביומא דרחמי אנן נמי ביומא דרחמי אמרי להו:,רבי יהושע אומר מעין שמנה עשרה: מאי מעין שמנה עשרה רב אמר מעין כל ברכה וברכה ושמואל אמר הביננו ה' אלהינו לדעת דרכיך ומול את לבבנו ליראתך ותסלח לנו להיות גאולים ורחקנו ממכאובינו ודשננו בנאות ארצך ונפוצותינו מארבע תקבץ והתועים על דעתך ישפטו ועל הרשעים תניף ידיך וישמחו צדיקים בבנין עירך ובתקון היכלך ובצמיחת קרן לדוד עבדך ובעריכת נר לבן ישי משיחך טרם נקרא אתה תענה ברוך אתה ה' שומע תפלה,לייט עלה אביי אמאן דמצלי הביננו,אמר רב נחמן אמר שמואל כל השנה כולה מתפלל אדם הביננו חוץ ממוצאי שבת וממוצאי ימים טובים מפני שצריך לומר הבדלה בחונן הדעת,מתקיף לה רבה בר שמואל ונימרה ברכה רביעית בפני עצמה מי לא תנן ר"ע אומר אומרה ברכה רביעית בפני עצמה ר' אליעזר אומר בהודאה,אטו כל השנה כולה מי עבדינן כר' עקיבא דהשתא נמי נעביד כל השנה כולה מאי טעמא לא עבדינן כר"ע תמני סרי תקון תשסרי לא תקון הכא נמי שבע תקון תמני לא תקון,מתקיף לה מר זוטרא ונכללה מכלל הביננו ה' אלהינו המבדיל בין קדש לחול קשיא:,אמר רב ביבי בר אביי כל השנה כולה מתפלל אדם הביננו חוץ מימות הגשמים מפני שצריך לומר שאלה בברכת השנים מתקיף לה מר זוטרא ונכללה מכלל ודשננו בנאות ארצך ותן טל ומטר,אתי לאטרודי אי הכי הבדלה בחונן הדעת נמי אתי לאטרודי,אמרי התם כיון דאתיא בתחלת צלותא לא מטריד הכא כיון דאתיא באמצע צלותא מטריד,מתקיף לה רב אשי ונימרה בשומע תפלה דא"ר תנחום אמר רב אסי טעה ולא הזכיר גבורות גשמים בתחיית המתים מחזירין אותו שאלה בברכת השנים אין מחזירין אותו מפני שיכול לאומרה בשומע תפלה והבדלה בחונן הדעת אין מחזירין אותו מפני שיכול לאומרה על הכוס טעה שאני:,גופא א"ר תנחום אמר רב אסי טעה ולא הזכיר גבורות גשמים בתחיית המתים מחזירין אותו שאלה בברכת השנים אין מחזירין אותו מפני שיכול לאומרה בשומע תפלה והבדלה בחונן הדעת אין מחזירין אותו מפני שיכול לאומרה על הכוס,מיתיבי טעה ולא הזכיר גבורות גשמים בתחיית המתים מחזירין אותו שאלה בברכת השנים מחזירין אותו והבדלה בחונן הדעת אין מחזירין אותו מפני שיכול לאומרה על הכוס,ל"ק הא ביחיד הא בצבור,בצבור מ"ט לא משום דשמעה משליח צבור אי הכי האי מפני שיכול לאומרה בשומע תפלה מפני ששומע משליח צבור מיבעי ליה,אלא אידי ואידי ביחיד ול"ק הא דאדכר קודם שומע תפלה | 29a. band scrutinized it,in an attempt to remember the blessing for btwo or three hours, and they did not remove himfrom serving as prayer leader.,The Gemara asks: bWhy did they not remove him? Didn’t Rav Yehuda saythat bRav said:One who was serving as the prayer leader before the congregation and berred inreciting bany of the blessings, they do not remove himfrom serving as the prayer leader. However, one who erred while reciting bthe blessing of the heretics they remove him,as bwe suspect that perhaps he is a hereticand intentionally omitted the blessing to avoid cursing himself. Why, then, did they not remove Shmuel HaKatan?,The Gemara answers: bShmuel HaKatan is different because he institutedthis blessing and there is no suspicion of him.,The Gemara continues: bLet us suspectthat bperhaps he reconsideredand, although he had been righteous, he had a change of heart? bAbaye said: We learnedthrough tradition that a bgoodperson bdoes not become wicked. /b,The Gemara challenges this: bAnddoes he bnotbecome wicked? bIsn’t itexplicitly bwritten: “And when the righteous one returns from his righteousness and does wickedlike all of the abominations that the wicked one has done, will he live? All of the righteous deeds that he has done will not be remembered given the treachery that he has carried out, and in his sin that he has transgressed, for these he shall die” (Ezekiel 18:24)? Abaye responds: bThatverse refers to a righteous individual who was binitially wickedand repented, but ultimately returned to his evil ways. bHowever, one who is initially righteousdoes bnotbecome wicked.,The Gemara asks: bAnddoes he bnotbecome wicked? bDidn’t we learnin a mishna: bDo not be sure of yourself until the day you die, as Yoḥa the High Priest served in the High Priesthood for eighty years and ultimately became a Sadducee.Even one who is outstanding in his righteousness can become a heretic., bAbaye responded: He is Yannai he is Yoḥa.In other words, from its inception, the entire Hasmonean dynasty had the same positive attitude toward the Sadducees, and there was no distinction between Yoḥa Hyrcanus and Alexander Yannai. Yoḥa the High Priest had Sadducee leanings from the outset. bRava said: Yannai is distinct and Yoḥa is distinct.They did not share the same position in this regard. bYannai was wicked from the outset and Yoḥa was righteous from the outset.If so, bit works out well according to Abaye’sopinion; bhowever, according to Rava’sopinion, bit is difficult.How could Yoḥa, a righteous individual, have changed and turned wicked?,The Gemara responds: bRavacould have bsaid to you:There is balsoroom for concern bthat one who is righteous from the outset will perhaps reconsiderand turn wicked, as was the case with Yoḥa the High Priest. bIf so,the original question is difficult: bWhy did they not removeShmuel HaKatan from serving as the prayer leader?,The Gemara answers: The case of bShmuel HaKatan is different, as he beganreciting the blessing of the heretics and while reciting it he became confused and forgot the end of the blessing. Consequently, he was not suspected of heretical leanings. Indeed, bRav Yehuda saidthat bRav, and some saythat bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, said: They only taughtthat one who errs while reciting the blessing of the heretics is removed in a case bwhere he did not beginreciting bit. Butif he bbeganreciting bit,then we allow him to collect his thoughts band finishreciting bit. /b,To this point, the Gemara discussed allusions to the nineteen blessings that constitute the weekday iAmidaprayer. The Gemara asks: bCorresponding to whatwere bthese sevenblessings bofthe bShabbat iAmidaprayer instituted? The Gemara answers: bRabbi Ḥalafta ben Shaul said: Corresponding to the seven “voices” which David mentioned on the waters;in other words, the seven times that “the voice of God” is mentioned in Psalms 29, which served as the source for the weekday prayer.,The Gemara asks further: bCorresponding to whatwere bthese nineblessings bofthe bRosh HaShanaadditional prayer instituted? bRabbi Yitzḥak of Kartignin said:They bcorrespond to the nine mentions of God’s name that Hannah said in her prayer(I Samuel 2:10). The connection between Hannah’s prayer and Rosh HaShana is based on what bthe Master said: On Rosh HaShana, Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah were rememberedand the divine decree that they would conceive their sons was issued.,The Gemara continues: bCorresponding to whatwere bthese twenty-fourblessings bofthe iAmidaprayer of bthe fastdays instituted? bRabbi Ḥelbo said:They bcorrespond to the twenty-four “songs” that Solomon said when he brought the ark into the Holy of Holiesduring the dedication of the Temple, as there are twenty-four expressions of song, prayer, and supplication there (I Kings 8). The Gemara asks: bIf so, then let us say thesetwenty-four blessing bevery day.The Gemara answers: bWhen did Solomon say them? On a day ofsupplication for bmercy. We, too, say them on a day ofsupplication for bmercy. /b,We learned in the mishna that bRabbi Yehoshua saysthat each day one recites ban abridgedversion of the prayer of beighteen blessings.The Gemara asks: bWhatis the babridgedversion of the prayer of beighteen blessings?There are different opinions. bRav said:One recites ban abridgedversion bof each and every blessing. Shmuel said:An abridged version of the prayer of eighteen blessings refers to a blessing composed specifically to be recited in place of the thirteen middle blessings. It contains references to each of the thirteen middle blessings. The formula for that blessing is: bGrant us understanding, Lord our God, to know Your ways, and sensitize our hearts so that we may revere You, and forgive us so that we may be redeemed, and keep us far from our suffering, and satisfy us with the pastures of Your land, and gather our scatteredpeople bfrom the fourcorners of the earth, band those who go astray shall be judged according to Your will, and raise Your hand against the wicked, and may the righteous rejoice in the rebuilding of Your city, and the restoration of Your Sanctuary, and in the flourishing of Your servant David, and in establishing a light for Your Messiah, son of Yishai. Before we call, may You answer. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer.” /b,Although Shmuel mentioned this abridged prayer, bAbaye would curse anyone who recitedthe prayer: bGrant us understanding,as he held that one may recite it only in exigent circumstances (Rabbi Ḥael, iMe’iri /i).,The Gemara further restricts the occasions when one may recite the abridged prayer. bRav Naḥman saidthat bShmuel said: One may recite: Grant us understanding throughout the entire year, except forin the evening prayer at bthe conclusion of Shabbat and at the conclusion of Festivals, because he must recitethe prayer of bdistinction [ ihavdala /i] inthe blessing: bWho graciously grants knowledge. /b, bRabba bar Shmuel strongly objects to this:After reciting the three initial blessings, blet us say ihavdala bas an independent fourth blessing,and afterwards recite the prayer of bGrant us understanding.This is feasible. bDidn’t we learnin a mishna that bRabbi Akiva says: He says ihavdala bas an independent fourth blessing? Rabbi Eliezer says:He says ihavdala binthe blessing of bthanksgiving. /b,The Gemara responds: bDo we practice in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Akiva throughout the entire yearregarding this issue, bthat we will also practicethis way bnow? Throughout the entire year, what is the reason that we do not practice in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Akiva?Because bthey instituted eighteenblessings, bthey did not institute nineteen. Here too, they instituted sevenblessings, bthey did not institute eight.Therefore, the possibility to recite ihavdalaas an independent fourth blessing is rejected., bMar Zutra strongly objects to this: Let us include ihavdalain the bframeworkof the abridged blessing: bGrant us understanding, Lord our God, Who distinguishes between sacred and profane.No response was offered to this objection, and it remains bdifficult. /b, bRav Beivai bar Abaye said:There is an additional restriction that applies to the abridged prayer. bOne may recite Grant us understanding throughout the entire year, except during the rainy season, because he must recite the requestfor rain bin the blessing of the years. Mar Zutra strongly objects to this: Let us includethe request for rain in the bframeworkof the abridged blessing: bAnd satisfy us with the pastures of Your land, and grant dew and rain. /b,The Gemara responds: That is unfeasible, as he will bbecome confusedby introducing a new element to the standard formula of the blessing. The Gemara asks: bIf so, byintroducing ihavdalainthe framework of the abridged blessing in the section alluding to the blessing, bWho graciously grants knowledge,he will balso become confused.Why did the Gemara fail to respond to Mar Zutra’s strong objection with regard to ihavdalain that manner?,The Gemara answers: bThey saythat these cases are different: bThere,regarding ihavdala /i, bsincethe introduction of the new element bcomes at the beginning of the prayer, he will notbecome bconfused. Here, sincethe request for rain bcomes in the middle of the prayer, he willbecome bconfused. /b, bRav Ashi strongly objects to this:If so, blet us saythe request for rain binthe framework of the abridged blessing in the section alluding to the blessing bWho listens to prayer. As Rabbi Tanḥum saidthat bRav Asi said: One who erred and did not mention the might of the rainsin the blessing on bthe revival of the dead, we require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. However, one who erred and failed to recite bthe requestfor rain binthe ninth blessing of the iAmida /i, bthe blessing of the years, we do not require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it bbecause he can recite it inthe blessing bWho listens to prayer. Andone who erred and failed to recite ihavdalainthe blessing bWho graciously grants knowledge, we do not require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, bas he can recite ihavdala bover the cupof wine. One can ask for rain in the blessing Who listens to prayer, and, consequently, can introduce it at the end of the abridged blessing without becoming confused. The Gemara responds: bOne who erred is different,and only then does he have the option to ask for rain in the blessing Who listens to prayer. iAb initio /i, the request for rain may not be inserted there.,The statement that Rabbi Tanḥum said that Rav Asi said was incidental to the previous discussion. The Gemara attempts to understand bthe matter itself. Rabbi Tanḥum saidthat bRav Asi said: One who erred and did not mention the might of the rainsin the blessing on bthe revival of the dead, we require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. However, one who erred and failed to recite bthe requestfor rain bin the blessing of the years, we do not require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it bbecause he can recite it inthe blessing bWho listens to prayer. Andone who erred and failed to recite ihavdalainthe blessing bWho graciously grants knowledge, we do not require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, bas he can recite ihavdala bover the cupof wine.,The Gemara braised an objectionbased on what was taught in the iTosefta /i: bOne who erred and did not mention the might of the rainsin the blessing on bthe revival of the dead, we require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. One who erred and failed to recite bthe requestfor rain bin the blessing of the years, we require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. However, one who erred and failed to recite ihavdalainthe blessing bWho graciously grants knowledge, we do not require him to returnto the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, bas he can recite ihavdala bover the cupof wine. The iToseftacontradicts the statement of Rabbi Tanḥum with regard to one who erred and failed to recite the request for rain in the blessing of the years.,The Gemara responds: bThis is not difficult. Thiscase, where we require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, refers to a situation where he is praying bas an individual.While bthatcase, where we do not require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, refers to a situation where he is praying baspart of ba congregation. /b,The Gemara raises a difficulty: When praying baspart of ba congregation, what is the reasonthat he need bnotneed return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it? bBecausehe can fulfill his obligation bwhen he hears it from the communal prayer leaderin the repetition of the iAmidaprayer. bIf so,Rabbi Tanḥum’s formulation is imprecise. bThatwhich he said that he need not return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it bbecause he can recite it inthe blessing: bWho listens to prayer, should have been: Because he hears it from the communal prayer leader.This proves that the attempt to rebuff the challenge from the iToseftato Rabbi Tanḥum was incorrect.,Rather, both bthisstatement of Rabbi Tanḥum band thatstatement in the iToseftarefer to one praying bas an individual, and it is,nevertheless, bnot difficult. Thiscase, where we do not require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it, refers to a case where bhe recallshis error bbeforehe reaches the blessing: bWho listens to prayer,in which case he can ask for rain in that blessing. |
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8. Babylonian Talmud, Sotah, 47b, 47a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
47a. רב ושמואל חד אמר נס וחד אמר נס בתוך נס מאן דאמר נס יער הוה דובים לא הוו מ"ד נס בתוך נס לא יער הוה ולא דובים הוו וליהוי דובים ולא ליהוי יער דבעיתי,אמר רבי חנינא בשביל ארבעים ושנים קרבנות שהקריב בלק מלך מואב הובקעו מישראל ארבעים ושנים ילדים איני,והאמר רב יהודה אמר רב לעולם יעסוק אדם בתורה ובמצות ואע"פ שלא לשמה שמתוך שלא לשמה בא לשמה שבשכר ארבעים ושנים קרבנות שהקריב בלק מלך מואב זכה ויצתה ממנו רות שיצא ממנו שלמה שכתוב ביה (מלכים א ג, ד) אלף עולות יעלה שלמה ואמר רבי יוסי בן חוני רות בתו של עגלון בנו של בלק היתה תאותו מיהא לקללה הוי,(מלכים ב ב, יט) ויאמרו אנשי העיר אל אלישע הנה נא מושב העיר טוב כאשר אדוני רואה וגו' וכי מאחר דמים רעים וארץ משכלת אלא מה טובתה אמר רבי חנין חן מקום על יושביו אמר רבי יוחנן שלשה חינות הן חן מקום על יושביו חן אשה על בעלה חן מקח על מקחו,תנו רבנן שלשה חלאין חלה אלישע אחד שגירה דובים בתינוקות ואחד שדחפו לגחזי בשתי ידים ואחד שמת בו שנאמר (מלכים ב יג, יד) ואלישע חלה את חליו אשר ימות בו,תנו רבנן לעולם תהא שמאל דוחה וימין מקרבת לא כאלישע שדחפו לגחזי בשתי ידיו ולא כיהושע בן פרחיה שדחפו [להנוצרי] (לאחד מתלמידיו) בשתי ידיו,אלישע מאי היא דכתיב (מלכים ב ה, כג) ויאמר נעמן הואל קח ככרים וכתיב ויאמר אליו לא לבי הלך כאשר הפך איש מעל מרכבתו לקראתך העת לקחת את הכסף ולקחת בגדים וזיתים וכרמים וצאן ובקר ועבדים ושפחות,ומי שקיל כולי האי כסף ובגדים הוא דשקיל אמר ר' יצחק באותה שעה היה אלישע עוסק בשמנה שרצים אמר לו רשע הגיע עת ליטול שכר שמנה שרצים וצרעת נעמן תדבק בך ובזרעך לעולם (מלכים ב ז, ג) וארבעה אנשים היו מצורעים אמר רבי יוחנן זה גחזי ושלשת בניו,(מלכים ב ח, ז) וילך אלישע דמשק למה הלך אמר ר' יוחנן שהלך להחזירו לגחזי בתשובה ולא חזר אמר לו חזור בך אמר לו כך מקובלני ממך כל מי שחטא והחטיא את הרבים אין מספיקין בידו לעשות תשובה,מאי עבד איכא דאמרי אבן שואבת תלה לו לחטאת ירבעם והעמידו בין שמים לארץ ואיכא דאמרי שם חקק לה אפומה והיתה אומרת אנכי ולא יהיה לך,ואיכא דאמרי רבנן דחה מקמיה דכתיב (מלכים ב ו, א) ויאמרו בני הנביאים אל אלישע הנה נא המקום אשר אנחנו יושבים שם לפניך צר ממנו מכלל דעד האידנא לא הוה דחיק,יהושע בן פרחיה מאי היא כדהוה קא קטיל ינאי מלכא לרבנן שמעון בן שטח אטמינהו אחתיה ר' יהושע בן פרחיה אזל ערק לאלכסנדריא של מצרים כי הוה שלמא שלח ליה שמעון בן שטח מני ירושלים עיר הקודש לך אלכסנדריא של מצרים אחותי בעלי שרוי בתוכך ואני יושבת שוממה אמר ש"מ הוה ליה שלמא,כי אתא אקלע לההוא אושפיזא קם קמייהו ביקרא שפיר עבדי ליה יקרא טובא יתיב וקא משתבח כמה נאה אכסניא זו א"ל (אחד מתלמידיו) רבי עיניה טרוטות א"ל רשע בכך אתה עוסק אפיק ארבע מאה שפורי ושמתיה כל יומא אתא לקמיה ולא קבליה,יומא חד הוה קרי קרית שמע אתא לקמיה הוה בדעתיה לקבוליה אחוי ליה בידיה סבר מדחא דחי ליה אזל זקף לבינתא פלחא אמר ליה חזור בך א"ל כך מקובלני ממך כל החוטא ומחטיא את הרבים אין מספיקין בידו לעשות תשובה דאמר מר [יש"ו] כישף והסית והדיח והחטיא את ישראל,תניא רבי שמעון בן אלעזר אומר יצר תינוק ואשה תהא שמאל דוחה וימין מקרבת, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big נמצא ההורג עד שלא נערפה העגלה תצא ותרעה בעדר משנערפה העגלה תקבר במקומה שעל ספק באתה מתחילתה כיפרה ספיקה והלכה לה נערפה העגלה ואחר כך נמצא ההורג הרי זה יהרג,עד אחד אומר ראיתי את ההורג ועד אחד אומר לא ראית אשה אומרת ראיתי ואשה אומרת לא ראית היו עורפין עד אחד אומר ראיתי ושנים אומרים לא ראית היו עורפין שנים אומרים ראינו ואחד אומר להן לא ראיתם לא היו עורפין,משרבו הרוצחנין בטלה עגלה ערופה משבא אליעזר בן דינאי ותחינה בן פרישה היה נקרא חזרו לקרותו בן הרצחן,משרבו המנאפים פסקו המים המרים ורבי יוחנן בן זכאי הפסיקן שנאמר (הושע ד, יד) לא אפקוד על בנותיכם כי תזנינה ועל כלותיכם כי תנאפנה כי הם וגו',משמת יוסי בן יועזר איש צרידה ויוסי בן יהודה איש ירושלים בטלו האשכלות שנאמר (מיכה ז, א) אין אשכול לאכול בכורה אותה נפשי יוחנן כהן גדול העביר הודיית המעשר אף הוא בטל את המעוררין ואת הנוקפין | 47a. bRav and Shmuelhad a dispute with regard to this episode. bOne saysthere was ba miracle, and one saysthere bwas a miracle within a miracle.The Gemara explains: bThe one who saysthere was ba miracleclaims that bthere wasalready ba forestin that place but bthere were no bears,and the miracle was the appearance of bears. bThe one who saysit was ba miracle within a miracleclaims bthat neither was there a forest nor were there bearsin that area. The Gemara asks with regard to the second opinion: Why was a double miracle required? bAnd let there be bears and no forest;the forest served no role in the story, so why was it created? The Gemara explains: The forest was necessary, basbears bare frightenedto venture into open areas but will attack people in their natural habitat, a forest., bRabbi Ḥanina says: Due to forty-two offerings that Balak, king of Moab, broughtwhen he tried to have Balaam curse the Jewish people, bforty-two children were broken off from Israel,in that incident involving Elisha. The Gemara asks: bIs that so?Was that the reward for his offerings?, bBut didn’t Rav Yehuda saythat bRav says: A person should always engage in Torahstudy bandin performance of bmitzvot, evenif he does so bnot for their own sake, as throughsuch acts performed bnot for their own sake,one will bcometo perform them bfor their own sake.He proves the value of a mitzva done not for its own sake: bAs in reward for the forty-two offerings that Balak, king of Moab, brought, he merited that Ruth descended from him, from whomKing bSolomon descended, about whom it is writtenthat he brought many offerings: b“A thousand burnt-offerings did Solomon offer up”(I Kings 3:4). bAnd Rabbi Yosei ben Ḥonisimilarly bsays: Ruth was the daughter of Eglon, son of Balak.These Sages state that Balak’s reward was to have Ruth descend from him, not that a number of Jewish people perish. The Gemara answers: bHis desire, in any event, was to cursethe Jewish people, and his reward for sacrificing his offerings was that the curse was fulfilled in the incident involving Elisha, as well.,The Gemara returns to discussing the incident involving Elisha: b“And the men of the city said to Elisha: Behold, please, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees,but the water is bad and the land miscarries” (II Kings 2:19). The Gemara asks: bBut if the water is bad and the land causes women to miscarry, what is pleasantabout bit? Rabbi Ḥanin says: The grace of a place is upon its inhabitants,i.e., people are fond of their hometown despite its shortcomings. bRabbi Yoḥa says: There are three gracesthat have a similar impact: bThe grace of a place upon its inhabitants; the grace of a woman upon her husband,despite her faults; and bthe grace of a purchaseditem bupon its buyer,as one who has bought something views it in a positive light.,§ bThe Sages taught: Elisha fell ill three times. Onewas a punishment bfor incitingthe bbears toattack bthe children; and onewas a punishment bfor pushing Gehaziaway bwith both hands,without leaving him the option to return; band onewas the sickness bfrom which he died, asan expression of illness bis statedthree times in the verse about Elisha: b“And Elisha became sick [ iḥala /i] with his illness [ iḥolyo /i] from which he would die”(II Kings 13:14). The root iḥet /i, ilamed /i, iheh /i, which indicates illness, is used twice in this verse, and it is stated once that Elisha will die., bThe Sages taught: It should always bethe bleft,weaker, hand that bpushesanother away bandthe bright,stronger, hand that bdrawshim bnear.In other words, even when a student is rebuffed, he should be given the opportunity to return. This is bnot like Elisha, who pushed Gehaziaway bwith both hands, and not like Yehoshua ben Peraḥya, who pushed Jesus the Nazarene,one bof his students,away bwith both hands. /b,The Gemara specifies: bWhat wasthat incident with bElisha? As it is written: “And Naaman said: Pray, take talents”(II Kings 5:23). Naaman offered Gehazi payment for the help Elisha had given him, bandwhen the verse recounts Elisha’s words to Gehazi, it bis written: “And he said to him: Did not my heart go, when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to take money, and to take garments, and olives, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and servants, and maidservants?”(II Kings 5:26). Here Elisha criticizes Gehazi for taking the payment.,The Gemara clarifies the criticism: bAnd did he take all that?But bit wasonly bmoney and garments that he took. Rabbi Yitzḥak says: At that time, Elisha was engaged inthe study of the topic of the beightimpure bcreeping animals. He saidto Gehazi: bWicked one, it is timefor you bto receivenow, in this temporal world, bthe rewardfor studying the topic of the beightimpure bcreeping animals.This is why the verse lists eight items. The Gemara adds parenthetically that Elisha also said to Gehazi: b“And the leprosy of Naaman shall cleave to you and to your descendants forever”(II Kings 5:27), and that the verse later states: b“Now there were four leprous men”(II Kings 7:3), about whom bRabbi Yoḥa says: This isreferring to bGehazi and his three sons. /b,The verse states: b“And Elisha came to Damascus”(II Kings 8:7). The Gemara asks: bFor whatpurpose did bhe gothere? bRabbi Yoḥa says: He went to help Gehazi in repentance, butGehazi bwould notagree to brepentfrom his evil ways. Elisha bsaid to him: Return from yoursins. Gehazi bsaid to him: This isthe tradition that bI received from you: Whoever sins and caused the masses to sin is not given the opportunity to repent. /b,The Gemara asks: bWhat didGehazi bdothat caused the masses to sin? bThere arethose bwho saythat bhe hung a magnetic rock on Jeroboam’s calf,the golden calf that Jeroboam established as an idol, and used a magnet to pull the calf off the ground so that bhe suspended it between heaven and earth,i.e., caused it to hover above the ground. This seemingly miraculous occurrence caused the people to worship it even more devoutly. bAnd there arethose bwho say: He engravedthe sacred bname on its mouth, and it would say: “I amthe Lord your God” band: “You shall not haveother gods” (Exodus 20:2). The idol would quote the two prohibitions from the Ten Commandments against idol worship, causing people to worship it even more devoutly., bAnd there arethose bwho say:Gehazi bpushed the Sagesaway bfromcoming bbefore him,preventing them learning from Elisha, bas it is written,after the aforementioned incident: b“And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, behold this place where we are staying before you is too cramped for us”(II Kings 6:1). This proves bby inference that until that timethe place bwas not cramped,as Gehazi would turn people away.,The Gemara returns to the incident in which bYehoshua ben Peraḥyaturned away Jesus the Nazarene: bWhat isthis incident? bWhen King Yannai was killing the Sages, Shimon ben Shataḥ was hidden by his sister,Yannai’s wife, while bRabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya wentand bfled to Alexandria of Egypt. When peace was madebetween Yannai and the Sages, bShimon ben Shataḥ sent himthe following letter: bFrom myself, Jerusalem the holy city, to you, Alexandria of Egypt. My sister, my husband dwells within you, and I am sitting desolate.Rabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya bsaid:I can blearn from it that there is peace,and I can return., bWhen he cameback to Eretz Yisrael, Rabbi Yehoshua barrived at a certain inn.The innkeeper bstood before him, honoring him considerably,and overall bthey accorded him great honor.Rabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya then bsat and was praisingthem by saying: bHow beautiful is this inn. Jesus the Nazarene,one of his students, bsaid to him: My teacher,but the beyesof the innkeeper’s wife bare narrow [ iterutot /i].Rabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya bsaid to him: Wicked one, is this what you are engaged in,gazing at women? bHe brought out four hundred ishofarotand excommunicated him. Every dayJesus bwould come before him, but he would not accept hiswish to return., bOne day,Rabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya bwas reciting iShema /iwhen Jesus bcame before him. He intended to accept himon this occasion, so bhe signaled to him with his handto wait. Jesus bthought he was rejecting himentirely. He therefore bwent and stood up a brickand bworshipped itas an idol. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Peraḥya bsaid to him: Return from yoursins. Jesus bsaid to him: This isthe tradition that bI received from you: Anyone who sins and causes the masses to sin is not given the opportunity to repent.The Gemara explains how he caused the masses to sin: bFor the Master said: Jesus the Nazarene performed sorcery, and he incitedthe masses, band subvertedthe masses, band caused the Jewish people to sin. /b, bIt is taughtin a ibaraitathat bRabbi Shimon ben Elazar says:With regard to the evil binclination,to ba child, andto ba woman, the lefthand bshould reject and the righthand should bwelcome.If one pushes too forcefully, the damage might be irreversible., strongMISHNA: /strong bIf the killer is found before the heifer’s neck was broken,the heifer bshall go out and graze among the herd.It is not considered sacred at all, and it may rejoin the other animals. If the killer is found bfromthe time bwhen the heifer’s neck was broken,even if the rest of the ritual has not yet been performed, it is prohibited to benefit from the animal, despite the killer having been found; it bshould be buried in its place.This is bbecausethe heifer binitially came for uncertainty,as the killer was unknown, and bit atonedfor bits uncertainty and left,i.e., it fulfilled its purpose of bringing atonement and is considered a heifer whose neck is broken in all regards. If bthe heifer’s neck was broken and afterward the killer was found, he is killed.The ritual does not atone for him.,If bone witness says: I saw the killer, and oneother bwitness says: You did not seehim; or if ba woman says: I saw, andanother bwoman says: You did not see, they would break the neckof the heifer, as without clear testimony about the identity of the killer the ritual is performed. Similarly, if bone witness says: I sawthe killer, band twowitnesses bsay: You did not see, they would break the neckof the heifer, as the pair is relied upon. If btwowitnesses bsay: We sawthe killer, band onewitness bsays to them: You did not see, they would not break the neckof the heifer, as there are two witnesses to the identity of the killer.,The mishna further states: bFromthe time bwhen murderers proliferated, theritual of the bheifer whose neck is broken was nullified.The ritual was performed only when the identity of the murderer was completely unknown. Once there were many known murderers, the conditions for the performance of the ritual were no longer present, as the probable identity of the murderer was known. bFromthe time bwhen Eliezer ben Dinai, who wasalso bcalled Teḥina ben Perisha, came, they renamed him: Son of a murderer.This is an example of a publicly known murderer.,The mishna teaches a similar occurrence: bFromthe time bwhen adulterers proliferated,the performance of the ritual of bthe bitter waters was nullified;they would not administer the bitter waters to the isota /i. bAndit was bRabbi Yoḥa ben Zakkaiwho bnullified it, asit bis stated: “I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry, nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery; for theyconsort with lewd women” (Hosea 4:14), meaning that when the husbands are adulterers, the wives are not punished for their own adultery., bFromthe time bwhen Yosei ben Yo’ezer of Tzereida and Yosei ben Yehuda of Jerusalem died, the clusters ceased,i.e., they were the last of the clusters, as explained in the Gemara, basit bis stated: “There is no cluster to eat; nor first-ripe fig that my soul desires”(Micah 7:1). The mishna continues in the same vein: bYoḥa the High Priest took away the declaration of the tithe.After his time, no one recited the passage about the elimination of tithes that had previously been said at the end of a three-year tithing cycle. bHe also nullifiedthe actions of bthe awakeners and the strikersat the Temple. |
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9. Babylonian Talmud, Yoma, 9a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
9a. לפי ששלח בכל גבולי ישראל וראה שאין מפרישין אלא תרומה גדולה בלבד,מעשר ראשון ומעשר עני נמי לא המוציא מחבירו עליו הראיה אלא מעשר שני נפרשו ונסקו וניכלוהו בירושלם,אמר עולא מתוך שפרהדרין הללו חובטין אותן כל י"ב חדש ואומרים להן מכרו בזול מכרו בזול לא אטרחונהו רבנן מאי פרהדרין פורסי,אמר רבה בר בר חנה א"ר יוחנן מאי דכתיב (משלי י, כז) יראת ה' תוסיף ימים ושנות רשעים תקצרנה יראת ה' תוסיף ימים זה מקדש ראשון שעמד ארבע מאות ועשר שנים ולא שמשו בו אלא י"ח כהנים גדולים,ושנות רשעים תקצרנה זה מקדש שני שעמד ד' מאות ועשרים שנה ושמשו בו יותר משלש מאות כהנים צא מהם מ' שנה ששמש שמעון הצדיק ושמונים ששמש יוחנן כהן גדול עשר ששמש ישמעאל בן פאבי ואמרי לה י"א ששמש ר' אלעזר בן חרסום מכאן ואילך צא וחשוב כל אחד ואחד לא הוציא שנתו,א"ר יוחנן בן תורתא מפני מה חרבה שילה מפני שהיו בה שני דברים גלוי עריות ובזיון קדשים גלוי עריות דכתיב (שמואל א ב, כב) ועלי זקן מאד ושמע את כל אשר יעשון בניו לכל ישראל ואת אשר ישכבון את הנשים הצובאות פתח אהל מועד ואע"ג דאמר ר' שמואל בר נחמני א"ר יוחנן כל האומר בני עלי חטאו אינו אלא טועה מתוך | 9a. This is bbecauseYoḥa the High Priest bsentemissaries bthroughout all theareas located within the bborders of iEretz bYisrael/i to assess the situation band saw thatthe people bwere separating only iteruma gedola /iand were neglecting to separate tithes. Therefore, he issued a decree that anyone who purchases produce from an iam ha’aretzmust be concerned about the possibility that it was not tithed and is required to tithe it. Since even an iam ha’aretzseparates iteruma gedola /i, the bakers who purchased grain from them were not required to do so.,And granted, bakers need not separate bfirst tithe and poor man’s tithedue to the principle: bThe burden of proof rests upon the claimant.Neither first tithe, given to Levites, nor poor man’s tithe, given to the poor, is sacred. It is merely the property of the Levite and the pauper, respectively. Since with regard to doubtfully tithed produce, by definition, there is no certainty that one is actually required to tithe it, if the Levite or the pauper should seek to take possession of the gifts, they must first prove that in fact the produce was not tithed. bHowever,with regard to bsecond tithe,why are the bakers exempt? bLet them separatesecond-tithe from the produce, btake it upto Jerusalem, band eat it in Jerusalem,which is the ihalakhawith regard to anyone else who purchases doubtfully tithed produce., bUlla said:It is bbecause these iparhedrin /i,government appointees, bbeatthe bakers throughout the bentire twelve monthsof their tenure band tell them: Sellyour baked goods bcheaply, sellthem bcheaply.Since the officers insist that the bakers refrain from raising their prices, bthe Sages did notfurther bburden themwith the exertion of separating second tithe from a large quantity of grain and taking it to Jerusalem, as they would be unable to raise their prices to cover the cost of the lost grain and the trip to Jerusalem. Since the presumptive status of the grain is that it was tithed, and the obligation to tithe doubtfully tithed produce is a stringency, the Sages exempted the baker from the obligation to do so. bWhatis the meaning of iparhedrin /i?These are royal bappointees [ ipursei /i]charged with performance of different tasks.,§ Apropos the Second Temple period, when High Priests were frequently replaced, the Gemara cites that bRabba bar bar Ḥana saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “The fear of the Lord prolongs days, but the years of the wicked will be shortened”(Proverbs 10:27)? bThe fear of the Lord prolongs days; thatis a reference to the bFirst Temple, which stoodfor bfour hundred and ten years and inwhich bonly eighteen High Priests served,as is written in the lists of the genealogy of the priests in the Bible., bBut the years of the wicked will be shortened; thatis a reference to the bSecond Temple, which stoodfor bfour hundred and twenty years and inwhich bover three hundred High Priests served.In calculating the tenures of the High Priests, bdeduct fromthe figure of four hundred and twenty years bforty years that Shimon HaTzaddik served, and eightyyears bthat Yoḥa the High Priest served, tenyears bthat Yishmael ben Pavi served, and some say elevenyears bthat Rabbi Elazar ben Ḥarsum served.These men were all righteous and were privileged to serve extended terms. After deducting those one hundred and thirty or one hundred and forty-one years, bgo out and calculate from thispoint bforwardand conclude: bEach and every oneof the remaining High Priests bdid not complete his yearin office, as the number of remaining High Priests is greater than the number of years remaining.,§ Apropos the sins of the High Priests in the Second Temple, the Gemara cites that bRabbi Yoḥa ben Torta said: Due to whatreason bwasthe Tabernacle in bShiloh destroyedin the time of the prophet Samuel? It was destroyed bdue tothe fact bthat there were two mattersthat existed binthe Tabernacle: bForbidden sexual relations and degradationof bconsecrated items.There were bforbidden sexual relations, as it is written: “Now Eli was very old and he heard what his sons were doing to all of Israel, how they lay with the women who did service at the opening of the Tent of Meeting”(I Samuel 2:22). bAnd although Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa said: Anyone who says that the sons of Eli sinnedby engaging in forbidden sexual relations bis nothing other than mistaken,even according to the alternative interpretation of the verse that it was bdue tothe fact |
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